My puppy refuses dry food and will only eat meat

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Hi everyone,

I have a 2-month-old puppy that we brought home at 1 month old, and she won’t eat anything except meat, fish, and bones. I’ve been trying to give her dry food but she won’t touch it. I even tried leaving her with nothing but dry food for two days, thinking she’d eventually get hungry and eat it, but no joy. Since she doesn’t eat much anyway—barely a quarter of her bowl and she never finishes it—I started adding meat to her dry food, along with a bit of veg, some rice, a little oil, and occasionally eggs (basically half home-cooked, half dry food) just to get her to eat something. But she always manages to pick through it, eating the meat and leaving the rest. I’ve even tried blitzing the dry food and veg in a blender and mixing it with tiny bits of meat, but it makes no difference; she just picks out the meat and leaves the rest.

The strange thing is that for a puppy who supposedly isn't a big eater, as soon as I start cooking or open the fridge, she gets super excited. She’s also very interested when we sit down to dinner and whines for us to give her something. Since we only have coffee tables, if I leave anything out, she’ll try to nick it—I even caught her licking the butter the other day!

Anyway, we’ve just come back from the vet who told us she’s in great health and that she’s gained about 4.4lbs in a month (I’ve no idea how!). She weighs 11lbs at 2 months and should be around 3 stone 2lbs as an adult.

How can I get her used to dry food? I don’t mind her eating meat, but not just meat and bones on their own.

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    Anonymous user Icon representing the flag French
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    Totally chilled out!

    Tagine ashes are yummy!

    And this is him right now—get off the laptop, please!

    Which is exactly what I'm going to do straight away... Doudou, I’ve taken all your advice on board. We’re heading off for a walk by the river, I’ll be back this afternoon.

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    Anonymous user Icon representing the flag French
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    Lorna

    Cornflakes, lol... What a great story. It’s not my husband who goes hunting, it’s the neighbours; my husband was really sad because a cat killed a bird yesterday...

    Doudou, I’ll reply to you as well. I’m going for a walk now as the weather is just too lovely... You’re right about the separation issues:

    This is Xena in Marrakech; she hopped into my bag while I was packing my things because she was scared of being left behind:

    A few photos:

    When she was 1 month old and feeling shy:

    In a slightly less shy mood:

    She’s always hunting for a sunspot:

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    ?
    Anonymous user Icon representing the flag French
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    Stunning 😲

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    Anonymous user Icon representing the flag French
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    Oops, here’s the photo – it’s the red house in the woods...

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    Anonymous user Icon representing the flag French
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    Photos! Photos!

    (Just keep an eye on the maximum file size; they often need resizing first.)

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    Anonymous user Icon representing the flag French
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    Hi Lorna

    Yeah, I’m having a bit of a lazy one this morning; usually it’s breakfast for 12!

    Right then, I’ll post some photos of the house in case anyone’s interested...

    I’m going to watch the video. I’ve seen some of Sloughis before and they’re really impressive; hunting isn’t usually my cup of tea, but I want to let her run and keep her in her element as much as possible...

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    Doudou229
    Doudou229 Icon representing the flag French
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    To help with the separation, you need to start leaving her on her own for short spells now so she can get used to it, otherwise being away from you will be too much for her...

    I’m with Lorna on the training side of things...

    👍

    As for meat: lamb, goat, mutton, poultry, and rabbit with the head (it’s all edible).

    Lamb breast, chicken carcasses with a bit of extra meat so there isn't too much bone...

    You can give mutton ribs as well.

    All types of offal: liver, poultry and lamb hearts, kidneys, lung, and poultry and duck gizzards...

    A bit of honey (a quarter of a teaspoon every now and then).

    I’ll be back this afternoon to add some more bits...

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    Anonymous user Icon representing the flag French
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    Anyway, I’m really pleased to meet Xena, and I can't wait to follow her adventures :-) It’s brilliant having a Sloughi on the forum; it’ll give us a chance to learn about a different breed growing up in such a unique setting! It looks like you’ve already got a great bond, and I’m sure there’s plenty of happiness ahead for the three of you.
    Translated from French
    Doudou229
    Doudou229 Icon representing the flag French
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    Hi Lorna, I’ve only ever come across two or three Sighthounds, and that was quite a few years ago now... Regarding the grains for Xena, you should soak them overnight in cold water, or you can cook them. You can use quinoa, semolina, rice, millet, barley, oats, polenta, rye, amaranth, buckwheat, or maize (only in very small amounts). You can also add some clarified butter or ghee...
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    Anonymous user Icon representing the flag French
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    When it comes to training, the first real step is to sit down with your husband and agree on the ground rules for the dog in the long run. It’s not the end of the world that she slept with you; no one wants to leave a tiny six-week-old mite shivering all alone on a rug, it's only natural :-)

    That being said, you can definitely provide her with a cosy bed and start by teaching her to "get down" first, then encourage her to stay in her own spot (you'll find loads of puppy training tutorials that explain how to do this).

    Gradually, you’ll be able to teach her to go to "her place" (this "place" could be a rug, a bed, etc., and she can have several of them) and reward her whenever she goes there. By combining pointing (where you point to where you want the dog to settle), rewards, and teaching her to "sit", the puppy will be more than happy to obey quite quickly :-)

    It’s incredibly handy because the dog learns to settle wherever you point, no matter where you are.

    For example, when I go on holiday with my dog or visit friends, I can just point to a corner of the room and she’ll settle down there quietly.

    This will also be great for your restaurant if you want her to be in there without wandering around the tables.

    However, I’d really recommend against feeding her from the table, as it could lead to problems later on if she starts constantly begging from guests (who might also end up giving her things that aren't great for her health, even if they mean well).

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